Maritime History of the Great Lakes

Around the Lakes, p. 182

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ONLY one other lake ship yard besides the Detroit Dry Dock Company has built as many as eight steamers for a single company. The Ogdensburg Transit Company, the inland water connection of the Vermont Central Railroad, has eight steamers running from Ogdensburg, through the Welland canal, to Chicago and return, all built by the Dry Dock company. The fleet consists of the W. L. Frost, W. J. Averill and W. A. Haskell, built in 1883 and 1884, the Gov. Smith, J. R. Lang-don, A. McVittie, F. H. Prince and H. R. James. They represent the typical, economical package freight carriers on the lakes, although their size is limited to the size of the Welland Canal locks, those built last being the largest possible size that can pass the locks. They carry about 200,000 tons of package freight during the open season of navigation. The dimensions of the W. L. Frost are 235 feet long, 36 feet feet beam and the dimensions of the H. R. James, the last built, (1890) are 240 feet keel, 42 feet beam and 25 feet 6 inches deep. There are few freight steamers in the world run as regularly as those in the package freight trade between Buffalo and Chicago. The Western Transit Company carries the palm in this trade for regularity of trips. The first steamers of importance run in this line, which is the water connection of the New York Central railway, were the Boston, Albany and Syracuse, built by the Detroit Dry Dock Company. A wonderful record was made in 1890 by the Hudson and Harlem, mentioned in the chapter on orders for duplicating Dry Dock boats. During eight months these two steamers made 27 round trips between Buffalo and Chicago, making a total of 44,000 miles for each steamer, and each carried during this time 102,500 tons of miscellaneous freight. Perishable freight has been sent by rail to Buffalo and thence by lake steamer to Chicago 96 hours after being delivered to the forwarding company in New York. It is believed that the Hudson and Harlem and the latest addition to the fleet, the Mohawk, are the most efficient and economical package freight carriers on the lakes.

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